Amanda Mc Gill (centre) and her new friends in the Ukrainian community flying the flag on the Simcoe Street bridge in Oshawa. Photo Bohdan Kolacz
It’s been a tough five months for Oshawa’s Amanda Mc Gill, but her long wait to finally see her son, who is recovering in a hospital far away, ends this week when she boards a Lot Airlines flight heading to Lviv, Ukraine.
The worst fear for any mother is hearing that her child has been seriously injured and is fighting for his life thousands of miles away. The greatest joy comes from knowing he’s on the mend and you’re just days away from wrapping your arms around him.
Mc Gill faced that nightmare last October when her son Ethan Custoza, who joined the fight in the Russia-Ukraine war, was severely injured during a drone attack on October 5 while at the front lines.
This Thursday, she will experience a much happier moment as she travels to see Ethan, who is now in a rehabilitation hospital in Truskavets, just south of Lviv.
“I’m nervous, of course, but I’m more excited and that trumps everything,” she said. “I’m going to see my boy and we’re going to spend some time together. We can heal together.”
“I’m going to give him the biggest hug ever.”
Custoza turned 24 in September while serving in a war zone on the other side of the world. He isn’t a professional soldier or even Ukrainian. But back in spring 2025, after watching an online video about a drone strike that killed 18 civilians-including a three-year-old boy-something deep inside him changed.
The video shared the story of three-year-old Tymofii who was walking home from playing with his grandmother when missiles began raining down on their street. Tymofii became the youngest casualty that day; his death deeply affected Custoza and prompted him to make a life-changing decision.
“Mom,” he said after calling Mc Gill, “I think I’ve found my purpose in life.”
Ethan Custoza
On May 1, Custoza left Oshawa for Poland and made his way to the Ukrainian border where military personnel met him and brought him into their war-torn country for training.
“As a mother, I don’t want my son to go to war,” Mc Gill said about his decision to enlist as a soldier. “But he had such passion for this cause. I expressed my feelings but told him, ‘If this matters so much to you, I’ll support you.’”
“He was determined without question. It felt brave and selfless.”
His training lasted eight weeks before he received his regiment card on July 7 and joined Charlie Company’s assault team within the 2nd International Legion for the Defence of Ukraine.
Three months later-and almost exactly one month after his birthday-Charlie Company faced heavy losses as Custoza suffered severe injuries during an operation late on October 4/5 in Kharkiv region.
“It’s hard to say exactly what happened. But soldiers nearby believe it was likely caused by a mortar shell based on how things looked,” Alex, Custoza’s commanding officer, informed Mc Gill last fall through Whats App messaging.
“A mortar shell exploded close to Ethan’s left side. He got multiple wounds from shrapnel all over his left side-but most seriously an open fracture of his right tibia with massive bleeding along with pneumothorax affecting his left lung,” Alex explained further. “All this complicated by significant blood loss and shock-but your boy is strong; he had comrades nearby.”
Custoza received immediate first aid which halted blood loss before being evacuated to shelter where more medical care was provided by combat medics from the legion before arriving at various hospitals where he underwent over two dozen surgeries.
Custoza had surgeries aimed at saving his leg as well as treating his collapsed lung along with removing shrapnel lodged elsewhere inside him.
A surgery they didn’t perform involved two small pieces near his heart-in fact within pericardium-that were seen as lucky by medical staff since any closer would have meant certain death for him from Oshawa.
A part of bone also had been removed from his damaged leg requiring several muscle transplants amid worries whether key nerves running down into feet were severed or not. “They won’t know if that outcome exists until rehab starts; if so then function might be limited in that right leg,” said Mc Gill.
Custoza still suffers from an open fracture of his right tibia; he faces numerous additional surgeries along with undergoing up-to-a-year-long rehabilitation period before returning home while battling PTSD making it difficult for Mc Gill back home worrying about being apart from him.
“”My mental state feels horrible!” – Amanda““.![]()
< p id=’caption-attachment-800878′ class=’wp-caption-text’>Amanda Mc Gill alongside Ethan’s father Johannes Custoza</></< p> < p> </> < br/> < br/> < br/> < p> </>Source link
Custoza turned 24 in September while serving in a war zone on the other side of the world. He isn’t a professional soldier or even Ukrainian. But back in spring 2025, after watching an online video about a drone strike that killed 18 civilians-including a three-year-old boy-something deep inside him changed.
The video shared the story of three-year-old Tymofii who was walking home from playing with his grandmother when missiles began raining down on their street. Tymofii became the youngest casualty that day; his death deeply affected Custoza and prompted him to make a life-changing decision.
“Mom,” he said after calling Mc Gill, “I think I’ve found my purpose in life.”
Ethan Custoza
On May 1, Custoza left Oshawa for Poland and made his way to the Ukrainian border where military personnel met him and brought him into their war-torn country for training.
“As a mother, I don’t want my son to go to war,” Mc Gill said about his decision to enlist as a soldier. “But he had such passion for this cause. I expressed my feelings but told him, ‘If this matters so much to you, I’ll support you.’”
“He was determined without question. It felt brave and selfless.”
His training lasted eight weeks before he received his regiment card on July 7 and joined Charlie Company’s assault team within the 2nd International Legion for the Defence of Ukraine.
Three months later-and almost exactly one month after his birthday-Charlie Company faced heavy losses as Custoza suffered severe injuries during an operation late on October 4/5 in Kharkiv region.
“It’s hard to say exactly what happened. But soldiers nearby believe it was likely caused by a mortar shell based on how things looked,” Alex, Custoza’s commanding officer, informed Mc Gill last fall through Whats App messaging.
“A mortar shell exploded close to Ethan’s left side. He got multiple wounds from shrapnel all over his left side-but most seriously an open fracture of his right tibia with massive bleeding along with pneumothorax affecting his left lung,” Alex explained further. “All this complicated by significant blood loss and shock-but your boy is strong; he had comrades nearby.”
Custoza received immediate first aid which halted blood loss before being evacuated to shelter where more medical care was provided by combat medics from the legion before arriving at various hospitals where he underwent over two dozen surgeries.
Custoza had surgeries aimed at saving his leg as well as treating his collapsed lung along with removing shrapnel lodged elsewhere inside him.
A surgery they didn’t perform involved two small pieces near his heart-in fact within pericardium-that were seen as lucky by medical staff since any closer would have meant certain death for him from Oshawa.
A part of bone also had been removed from his damaged leg requiring several muscle transplants amid worries whether key nerves running down into feet were severed or not. “They won’t know if that outcome exists until rehab starts; if so then function might be limited in that right leg,” said Mc Gill.
Custoza still suffers from an open fracture of his right tibia; he faces numerous additional surgeries along with undergoing up-to-a-year-long rehabilitation period before returning home while battling PTSD making it difficult for Mc Gill back home worrying about being apart from him.“”My mental state feels horrible!” – Amanda““.
